Achievements of Masterplans in East Spring Secondary School

Based on my Enhanced School Experience (ESE), the achievements of the Masterplans 1 and 2 have been very much achieved through the delivering of the lesson in East Spring Secondary School. Multimedia infrastructure is much secured in the compounds of the school whereby East Spring Secondary School has their very own ICT departments and a team of professionals that manages the usage of ICT and technology in the school. This is further strengthen with the presence of the specific lab for the team of professionals to ensure the smooth running of the ICT operations in the school and the also the safekeeping and managing of the equipments such as iPads, cameras, video recorders, devices for collection of responses from the students and many more. ICT is also used as a pedagogical tool and not simply to aid teaching as the usage of ICT that is implemented in East Spring Secondary School comes with it a list of responsibilities for the students to shoulder apart from the normal learning that has to take place.

In addition to that, East Spring Secondary School develops ownership of ICT through the crafting of lessons with the usage of ICT by teachers. Such simultaneously proved the competencies of teachers in the usage of the ICT and the necessary skills needed to craft the lessons. Students simultaneously were given the necessary skills needed to follow ICT lessons through the basic usage and skills needed to surf the internet, the usage of PowerPoint slides etc for the presentation of group work and the research carried out as part of learning. From what I have observed during my ESE, this proved to be very efficient in the teaching and learning as teachers are able to deliver lessons through mediums that the students are very much familiar and interested in and at the same time providing the platform for learning on the students’ part to take place. Take for instance a particular lesson (as mentioned in the first post), the playing of the online game provides the opportunity for students to develop self directed learning whereby students are required to identify and differentiate between natural and manmade factors that affects the livelihood of a third world farmer and his crops. This particular game crafted into the lesson on Geography of Food allows students the freedom to not only explore this particular topic but also link it to the topic on Development learned earlier on.

These achievements do not just stop there. East Spring Secondary School has also moved towards Masterplan 3 whereby the incorporation of self directed learning is very much infused into the everyday lesson of almost all of the class across the school.  As mentioned earlier, self directed learning in the students through their everyday lessons in school and also during the E-learning day provides students with the freedom to take learning to a higher level but at the same time shouldering the responsibility of their own learning. Also, teachers constantly need to undergo the same learning that students are going through to ensure that students are kept up to date. The playing of the third world farmer online game allows teachers to learn as they too play the game with the students as the factors that affects the livelihood changes every time and the need to make decisions in the game too changes with the requirements of the game and this process of learning therefore is one that is undergone by both the teachers and the students at the same time.

Such shows that in East Spring Secondary School the achievements of all three Masterplans have been achieved and integrated into the everyday lessons and the culture of the school. This proved to be exiting for the school, teachers and staff as the process of leaning takes place everywhere within the school and at home and this enriches the students and teachers. Learning and education therefore is cherished by all and this helps to create a very conducive environment for all.

Second Post

Development and implementation of the three Masterplans for ICT in education is indeed very crucial for the provision of a holistic learning in the education system as well as to improve the education system in line with the development of technology and media. The expansion of technology and media is evidently impacting our lives today and it is inevitably for technology and media to be cast out from the education system as well. The influence of these two advancement giants should therefore be grasped and exploited to the advantage of the education system, the teaching workforce as well as the students. Implementation of the three Masterplans in ICT therefore ensures that technology and media could be used to the advantage of the students and teachers to ensure that a better learning takes place and one that is in line with the expectation and running of the world in this new technological age.

Masterplan 1 for instance kicked start by ensuring that the platform is build for the usage of technology and ICT in schools through the provision of one computer terminal to be shared among 6 students. Such came at an age where computers were still not a household item and is therefore reflective of the importance MOE placed upon the need to familiarise the students with the usage from an early age in the primary schools. Such was evident from my very own experience where the computer terminals placed in every classroom provided the students with learning opportunities to discover new things on our own through conducting the searches online within the confines of our own classrooms. Such was later coupled with the need to attend courses such as the basic usage of Microsoft word, power point and much more to equip students with the necessary skills needed for the advancement towards Masterplan 2.

Masterplan 2 implemented in 2002, pushes the boundary even further by allowing capacity building whereby teachers are able to craft their own ICT lesson and usage to best suit their teaching method and facilitating their students.  Such has become a common norm in schools today whereby the usage of ICT has become an everyday tool that aids the learning of the students. This was very much evident even in my secondary school and junior college days whereby different teachers have different methods of integration of ICT to facilitate their teaching. Watching of YouTube videos have become a common learning tool that aids learning and helps broaden learning to beyond the confines of the classrooms. Masterplan 2 has impacted me the most simple because its large scale integration has shifted learning to a level that is both fun and engaging. Such is seen not only through the usage of videos screening but also the platform to broadcast and podcast in Innova Junior College as past of the speak good English campaign. The more conventional method of speaking properly in class has given way to the more sophisticated broadcast and podcast that provide me with the platform to experience it for myself and as the saying goes “ experience is the best teacher”, Masterplan 2 helps students to experience learning responsibility and through a rather self directed approach which in my opinion strengthen and facilitate learning beyond the ability of the usage of the textbook.

The current Masterplan 3, in my opinion, not only worked upon the goals of the above mentioned Masterplans but also fine tune the strings of education to further achieve a higher standard in education in line with the expectations of the ministry, the nation and the parents. Such is done without dismissing the holistic development of the child. Based on my Enhance School Experience (ESE), the current Masterplan 3 will definitely affect my role(s) as a beginning teacher as it provides me the challenge of not only delivering education to the students but also the need to constantly upgrade myself to fit the needs of Masterplan 3. This is done to ensure that teaching and learning are both taking place for myself as the teacher and also for the students. The self directed learning model for the students mentioned in Masterplan 3 is something I find remarkably interesting simply because it takes education to the next level whereby students are no longer expected to just absorb the education that is being delivered by the teacher but are also needed to be constantly responsibly for their very own learning. Such has been practises in East Spring Secondary School whereby students are often given the opportunity to be responsible for their own learning through the usage of ICT. This is mainly seen through the e-learning day held for the lower secondary students. Students are given assignments to be completed at home without the need to turn up for school. These assignments are however not the conventional assignments but rather one that required the students to search for the answers online and thus develop their own thinking and analysing skills through the processing of the information gathered online. In addition to that, the Masterplan 3 requires the implementation of student teacher learning partnership and this is something that will affect my role as a beginning teacher greatly as I therefore have to be constantly aware of the need to craft ICT lessons that not only encourage self directed learning but also one that involves partnership in the students. This requires establishment of good rapport with the students and the identification of the needs of the students. As a beginning teacher, I believe Masterplan 3 will not only provide a more solid platform for myself as the educator to develop and craft my lessons to engage the students and provide a very exciting environment whereby the world is the classroom but at the same time challenging me to identify and meet the needs of the different students through monitored self directed learning.

How ICT is used by school teachers

ENHANCED SCHOOL EXPERIENCE:

PREPARATORY TASK FOR ICT FOR MEANINGFUL LEARNING

Enhanced School Experience: Classroom Observations of ICT Use

(I)                         Specific Observations

School Name:   East Spring Secondary School

Class:  Sec 3E4

Profile of the class: (For e.g., the students’ academic abilities,  stream and other characteristics) The students of 3E4 generally engage with the teachers and are able to understand what is being taught without much difficulty. A bunch of very lively students, they bear the characteristic of the usual teenager who is mostly eager to learn but there are occasions when their attention span can be quite short.

Subject:

What ICT tools are used in the lesson? Online Game ( www.3rdworldfarmer.com) Powerpoint slides Youtube videos

Describe how ICT is used for teaching and learning in the lesson. The lesson was opened with the watching of 2 short video clips on YouTube, mainly one presenting the food condition in USA and contradicting it with another video showing the condition in the African nations. These provided the students with the platform to see the contrasting condition before moving on to lesson proper with the aid with the PowerPoint slides.  Such slides enable the teacher to better connect the topic together by re-adjusting the points and summarizing certain topics together to ensure that students are able to better understand not only what is taught during that particular lesson but also the topic as a whole and linking it simultaneously to the previous topics that had already been covered.  Once the understanding is seen in the students through the asking of questions, they embark on their very own journey of trying to be a third world farmer through the game. Worksheets were prepared to ensure that learning takes place while playing as students have to take note of all the factors that affects the livelihood of the farmer and categories them into environmental of man-made factors.

(II)                      General Observation:

How do teachers in the school feel about the use of ICT for teaching and learning? (For this question, you may want to speak to the HOD/ICT and other teachers you know in the school.)

Within the Geography department, the teachers are generally very receptive towards the usage of ICT for teaching simply because not only is it fun and engaging for the students but it also provides the platform for students to explore the world and the situation and not be limited to the confines of the classroom and the textbook. Mdm Noreen, a senior teacher when asked the reason behind wanting the students to play the online game mentioned that students these days are much more familiar with these online games and the plethora of its availability online should be made use to benefit them. During the lesson, students are able to not only play and enjoy themselves but also became aware of the pressing problem that existed in real life through the representation of the game. This, aided with the worksheets ensures a more holistic learning takes place. Similarly, the other teachers within the school and department felt the same way as the usage of ICT helps to better engage the students and at the same time making the lesson more interesting and thus better learning takes place.